The weather is getting colder day by day, isn't it? I hope everyone is staying healthy and hasn't caught a cold.
This time, we'll be showcasing some of Ms. Shimaji's special collections from the gallery on the salon walls.


This framed artwork contains the cherished possessions of two literary giants. Specifically, it features a fountain pen used by Renzo Shibata and a pipe favored by Kenzo Kitakata.
After the war, Renzo Shibata served as editor-in-chief of "Shohyo" (Book Review) before dedicating himself to creative writing. In 1951, he won the Naoki Prize for "The Descendants of Jesus," and from 1956, he began serializing "Nemuri Kyoshiro Burai Hikae" (The Rogue of Nemuri Kyoshiro), sparking a boom in swordsman stories set in the Sengoku and Bakumatsu periods.

Furthermore, Kenzo Kitakata has written hard-boiled and historical novels and has received numerous awards, including the 1st Japan Adventure Fiction Association Grand Prize in 1958 for "Sleepless Night" and the 4th Shibata Renzaburo Prize in 1991 for "The Star of the Broken Army."

I've given a brief introduction to these two literary giants, but you may know more about them than I do.
So, what led these two people's favorite items to end up at the salon...?


Shimaji : "I received it as a memento when Mr. Shibaren (a nickname for Mr. Renzo Shibata) passed away. I thought about using it a few times, but I felt it was too precious for me to use, so I couldn't bring myself to use it. One day, when I was meeting with Kenzo Kitakata, a friend of mine for a long time, I thought, 'That's it! It would suit the literary giant Kitakata!' and gave it to him."

Customer: "Then why is it here together with Professor Kitakata's pipe?"

Shimaji : "Well, the Northern literary giant only wrote the title and returned it saying it was too much of a burden. Instead, he asked me to frame it and display it together with his favorite pipe. That's how this framed collaboration between these two literary giants came to be."

Customer: "I never imagined that's what happened."


Shimaji : "When I was young, Mr. Shibaren treated me like a son, and our friendship continued even after the serialization he was in charge of ended. I'm still friends with the great northern writers. Friendship is truly a precious thing."

These pen and pipe are incredibly valuable, almost historical artifacts. Was it fate that they ended up here, connected to Mr. Shimaji...?
For more details, please ask Ms. Shimaji the next time you visit the salon. She might share her memories of the two literary giants along with the story.


This week's quote
"The most precious thing is friendship."


This week's alcohol
"Yamazaki 12-Year-Old"
A delicate, complex, and profound flavor. It features vanilla and ripe fruit aromas derived from the white oak barrel-aged spirit.


inquiry
Isetan Shinjuku Store, Men's Building 8th Floor = Isetan Men's Residence
03-3352-1111 (main representative)